The present invention relates to canoes having gunwales useful for attaching canoeing accessories thereto.
Canoes have been used for thousands of years. Early canoes were constructed by assembling frames of wooden ribs and sewing layers of birch, elm or cedar bark together using spruce or pine root. The sewn layers of bark were attached to the wooden rib frame to form a lightweight, water resistant outer shell of the canoe. Such canoes were used for exploring, traveling, and transporting heavy objects such as furs in commerce. The upper edge of such a canoe's sides is called the gunwale, which extends fore and aft of the canoe along its length.
Today's canoes are similar to the canoes of yore but may be constructed from fiberglass and other materials and are popular for a variety of recreational activities. Modern-day canoeists use the versatile watercraft for activities including bird watching, whitewater paddling, snorkeling, and fishing, among other activities. When a single canoe is used for a variety of recreational activities, accessories are often desired for optimal enjoyment of each particular activity. Accessories for increased enjoyment of such recreational activities are available in the marketplace but no satisfactory system of adapting all of the accessories interchangeably or in combination to a single canoe exists.
Therefore there is a need for a canoe that can be adapted to a wide range of activities, and that offers the canoeist an ability to interchangeably or in combination carry and use various accessories. There is also a need for an improved method of canoeing whereby a canoeist can carry any of a wide range of accessories with her that are interchangeably or in combination easily adaptable to the canoe, and that are secured to the canoe.